Aroma-preserving canister

ABSTRACT

An improved canister for preserving aroma of coffee or spices includes a hollow body and a cap sealing the body. An elastic disk sealing the canister is placed inside the canister under the cap. The disk has a major stationary portion and a minor movable portion. The cap, the body of the canister or the movable portion includes an element for pressing and bending the disk movable portion downwardly when the canister is capped. The disk movable portion is retracted back to its original sealing position when the canister is uncapped.

FIELD AND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an improved canister useful forpreserving aroma of granulated products, especially coffee.

A common disadvantage of canisters for coffee and other granulatedproducts is that the products gradually loose their aroma as thecanister is opened more and more. The aim of the present invention is topreserve the aroma of canned granulated products despite these multipleopenings.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The improved canister according to the present invention for preservingthe aroma freshness and hygienics of coffee or other granulated fragrantproducts comprises the hollow body of the canister and a cap sealingsaid body, and this canister is characterized by having an elastic diskplaced horizontally inside said canister at about 0.5-1.5 cm under thecap so as the fragrant product is contained in the canister under thisdisk. The disk seals the canister product when the canister is uncapped,and the disk is “opened” when the canister is capped. The disk consistsof two portions: a major stationary portion and a minor movable portion.The cap, or the body of the canister, or the movable portion of the diskincludes a means for pressing and bending said movable portion of thedisk downwardly when the canister is capped.

In the “open” position when the canister is capped and the movableportion of the disk is bent downwardly, there is a space between theside wall of the canister and the edge of the movable portion of thedisk, allowing portioning-up the product. The product is portioned byturning the canister upside down and by returning it back into itsnormal position. When the capped canister is inverted upside down,coffee is poured down through this space. On returning the canister intoits normal position, a portion of coffee remains on the stationary partof the disk under the cap while the rest of the coffee pours back intothe lower part of the canister through the space formed by the movableportion of the disk oriented downwardly. When the user removes the capof the canister, a spring under the disk pushes the disk movable part.The disk movable part is sealing the canister, and only this coffeeportion can be poured out into the user's cup, so that the product inthe canister is scaled and preserved.

The stationary portion of the disk may have a spoon-like concavedepression on its side facing the cap of the canister, thus providing abetter and exact portioning of the product.

In a preferred embodiment, said means for pressing and bending themovable portion downwards is a protrusion located on the internal sideof the cap of the canister and directed downwardly, or a protrusionlocated on the movable portion of the disk and directed upwardly.

For purposes of this specification and the accompanying claims the term“protrusion” refers also to a rod.

According to the present invention, when the cap is closed the disk isopen and when the cap is open the disk is closed.

As an alternative, the movable portion of the disk is retracted to itsinitial horizontal sealing position (when the canister is uncapped) bythe elastic force of the material of the disk itself, or by anadditional means to make the retraction more efficient, e.g., by aspring fastened by one end to said movable portion and by another end toa specific projection from the stationary portion of the disk.

In a preferred embodiment, the elastic disk to be installed and operatedin the improved canister is comprised of a major stationary portion anda minor movable portion having suitable dimensions fitted to thecanister.

When the movable disk is pushed down by the cap, pressing the rod, thedisk creates a situation of horizontally disk that enables the productto enter the curved spoon.

The rod must be always higher then the edge of the inside disk.

The disk can be of one unit but for security reasons the rod can besupplied separately from the disk. The rod can be connected to thegroove by the consumer.

DEFINITIONS

For purposes of this specification and the accompanying claims the term“canister” refers to a canister having solid walls or any package boxfor preserving an aroma and/or freshness and hygienic of differentproducts, including for example coffee and other powders or granulatedproducts.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention will be described in detail by FIGS. 1-7. Thisdetailed description is not intended to limit the scope of theinvention, but only to illustrate the preferred embodiments.

FIG. 1 illustrates the capped aroma-preserving coffee canister with aprotrusion on the movable portion of the disk, turned upside down forportioning-up coffee.

FIG. 2 illustrates the capped aroma-preserving coffee canister with aprotrusion on the movable portion of the disk in its normal position.

FIG. 3 illustrates an uncapped aroma-preserving coffee canister with aprotrusion on the movable portion of the disk.

FIG. 4 illustrates an uncapped aroma-preserving coffee canister with aprotrusion on the internal part of the cap of the canister.

FIG. 5 illustrates a perspective view of an aroma-preserving coffeecanister.

FIG. 6 illustrates an alternative embodiment the present invention witha retracting spring in the position wherein the canister is uncapped.

FIG. 7 illustrates the embodiment of FIG. 6 in the position wherein thecanister is capped.

FIGS. 1-3 illustrate a preferred embodiment having a protrusion on themovable portion of the disk.

FIG. 1 illustrates the capped coffee canister, turned upside down forportioning-up coffee. Cap (2) presses protrusion (6). Movable portion(5) of disk (7) is bent towards the bottom of the canister. Coffee poursdown through the space (8) between side wall of canister body (1) andthe edge of movable portion (5) of disk (7) and enters the space betweencap (2) and stationary portion (3) with depression (4).

FIG. 2 illustrates the canister body (1), closed by cap (2). Cap (2)presses protrusion (6) of movable portion (5) of disk (7), thus bendingmovable portion (5) downwards. A portion of coffee is left in depression(4).

FIG. 3 illustrates a position when cap (2) is removed from canister body(1) and does not press protrusion (6). Movable portion (5) of disk (7)seals the canister. Depression (4) of stationary portion (3) of disk (7)contains a portion of coffee ready for use.

FIG. 4 illustrates a preferred embodiment with a protrusion on internalpart of the cap of the canister. Cap (2) with protrusion (6) is removedfrom the canister body (1). Movable portion (5) of disk (7) is in itssealing position. A portion of coffee is left in depression (4) ofstationary part (3) of disk (7).

In FIG. 5, a capped coffee canister is shown in a perspective viewaccording to FIG. 2. Cap (2), disk (7) and canister body (1) areconditionally separated from each other. Cap (2) presses protrusion (6)and thus bends movable portion (5) of disk (7) downwards so as space (8)forms between the side wall of canister body (1) and the edge of movableportion (5) of disk (7). A portion of coffee is left in depression (4)of stationary portion (3) of disk (7).

FIG. 6 illustrates an alternative embodiment of the present inventionwith retractive spring (20) in a position wherein the canister isuncapped. Movable portion (15) of disk (17) is equipped with retractingspring (20). Spring (20) extends from protrusion (21) of stationaryportion (13) of disk (17) to protrusion (22) of movable portion (15) ofdisk (17) and is attached to both of these protrusions. When cap (12) isopen, it does not press down protrusion (16) of movable portion (15).Due to that, spring (15) is released and presses movable portion (15)upwardly into its sealing position wherein it closes opening (23) ofdisk (17) and thus seals the canister.

FIG. 7 illustrates the embodiment of FIG. 6 in the position wherein thecanister is capped. In this position, cap (12) presses down protrusion(16) of movable portion (15) of disk (17) and bends movable portion (15)downwards, pushing it away from opening (23) and thus compressing spring(20). Spring (20) is attached to protrusion (21) of stationary portion(13) of disk (17) and to protrusion (22) of movable portion (15) of thedisk. When the coffee canister is capped, a portion of coffee can bepoored out through opening (23) into depression (14) by turning thecoffee canister upside down.

1. An aroma preserving canister for coffee or other granulated producthaving aroma, said canister comprising: a hollow body of the canister; acap sealing said hollow body; and a disk sealing said coffee or productwhen the canister is uncapped; wherein said disk is placed horizontallyinside said canister at about 0.5-1.5 cm under the cap, said disk havinga major stationary portion and a minor movable portion; the cap and themovable portion contain mutual means for maintaining said movableportion pressed downwardly thus unsealing said coffee or product whenthe canister is capped; the connection between the stationary portionand the moveable portion is elastic or provided with means forretracting said disk movable portion back to the horizontal sealingposition when the canister is uncapped; and said mutual means comprise aprotrusion located on the movable portion of the disk and directedupwardly.
 2. An aroma preserving canister for coffee or other granulatedproduct having aroma, said canister comprising: a hollow body of thecanister; a cap sealing said hollow body; and a disk sealing said coffeeor product when the canister is uncapped; wherein said disk is placedhorizontally inside said canister at about 0.5-1.5 cm under the can,said disk having a major stationary portion and a minor movable portion;the cap and the movable portion contain mutual means for maintainingsaid movable portion pressed downwardly thus unsealing said coffee orproduct when the canister is capped; the connection between thestationary portion and the moveable portion is elastic or provided withmeans for retracting said disk movable portion back to the horizontalsealing position when the canister is uncapped; and the stationaryportion of the disk has a spoon-shaped concave depression on the sidefacing the cap of the canister.
 3. An aroma preserving canister forcoffee or other granulated product having aroma said canistercomprising: a hollow body of the canister; a cap sealing said hollowbody; and a disk sealing said coffee or product when the canister isuncapped; wherein said disk is placed horizontally inside said canisterat about 0.5-1.5 cm under the cap, said disk having a major stationaryportion and a minor movable portion; the cap and the movable portioncontain mutual means for maintaining said movable portion presseddownwardly thus unsealing said coffee or product when the canister iscapped; the connection between the stationary portion and the moveableportion is elastic or provided with means for retracting said diskmovable portion back to the horizontal sealing position when thecanister is uncapped; and said movable portion of the disk is retractedback to the horizontal position by a spring fastened by one end to saidmovable portion and by another end to a specific projection from thestationary portion of the disk.
 4. An elastic disk to be installed andoperated in a, said canister comprising: a hollow body of the canister;a cap sealing said hollow body; and a disk sealing said coffee orproduct when the canister is uncapped; wherein said disk is placedhorizontally inside said canister at about 0.5-1.5 cm under the cap,said disk having a major stationary portion and a minor movable portion;the cap and the movable portion contain mutual means for maintainingsaid movable portion pressed downwardly thus unsealing said coffee orproduct when the canister is capped; and the connection between thestationary portion and the moveable portion is elastic or provided withmeans for retracting said disk movable portion back to the horizontalsealing position when the canister is uncapped; wherein the elastic diskcomprises said major stationary portion and said minor movable portionhaving suitable dimensions fitted to the canister, said minor moveableportion comprising an upwardly oriented protrusion adapted to maintainthe moveable portion down when pressed by the cap of the cappedcanister.
 5. An aroma preserving canister, comprising: a hollow body; acap for sealing said hollow body; and a moveable auxiliary sealingmember having a sealing position in which said auxiliary sealing memberseals a portion of said hollow body, said auxiliary sealing member beingplaced inside said hollow body under said cap; wherein when the canisteris capped, said cap moves said auxiliary sealing member away from thesealing position and against a biasing force; when the canister isuncapped, said auxiliary sealing member is returned to the sealingposition by said biasing force; and said canister further comprises aspring generating said biasing force.
 6. The canister of claim 5,further comprising a disk having a stationary portion and a moveableportion defining said auxiliary sealing member.
 7. The canister of claim6, wherein said spring has opposite end portions fastened to saidstationary and moveable portions, respectively.
 8. The canister of claim7, wherein said disk is placed horizontally inside said canister atabout 0.5-1.5 cm under the cap.